The Ultimate Ally
by acosta perez jose ramiro
Summary: When someone gets out from The Ghost Zone, and he isn't a ghost, it might be too much for Danny to handle, unless receiving a very special help. CROSSOVER.
1. Strange Visitor

**  
**

Hello, guys! I'm back, and this time, with my first crossover in Danny's section. (You know, I'm here too.) Come on, Tucker, don't you tell me you still fell jealous about Danny and his powers! (Of course not, man! Freakshow is the one with ghost envy, not me… is just that I would like having some, you know… more participation on these stories.) I'll see what I can do, Tuck. Can you please do the honors?

(Of course; DISCLAIMER; Ramiro doesn't own Danny or any other character displayed in this story. Besides the ones from our series, copyrighted by Nickelodeon and created by Butch Hartman, Ramiro will give something special to any comic books' geek reading here; we'll not mention who will appear, to not ruining the surprise, but we'll have a second disclaimer later for their use.)

Thanks, Tuck. As he said, I'll have some special guests in this fic. Besides that detail, I want to tell you guys I'm linking this story with _"The Huntress' Confession"_, so Danny and Val will be a couple from the start. (Thanks for ruining my chances, dude!) Yeah, right; Tuck, you flirt with anyone with two X chromosomes and the right age… by the way, what's the age range for your love interests? (From 13 years old to… uh… how old is Madonna?)

Never mind. Enough of this; on with the show!

**The Ultimate Ally.**

**A Danny Phantom's story by Acosta Pérez José Ramiro.**

**-Strange Visitor.**

"Come on, Clockwork, let me see it!"

"On the right time, Danielle," The time keeper ghost replied without losing sight of the screen in front of him.

"Oh, but you said my lair is almost done!" The ghostly girl said in a slightly exasperated tone, "Look, I don't want to sound ungrateful or something like that, but being around here with only you and you-know-who trapped inside the thermos screaming every bad word ever invented, well, is kind of boring, especially since you don't allow me to go to the really cool parts of your lair."

Clockwork sighed yet conserved his cool. When Danielle returned to Amity Park, almost a month ago, the ghost offered his help to her and Danny, promising to take care of the little girl. Danielle had gained a lot more control over her powers, so she didn't melt so easily, but this control came at the cost of almost half of her power. Luckily, Clockwork's abilities allowed him to slow down her body's degrading process, at least until her ghostly lair was finished; in the case of normal ghosts, the lairs started forming right after their decease so they could have a place to rest and build their strength, and recover energy when injured, but, since Danny hadn't died, his lair started forming the first time he made a deep exploring at The Ghost Zone, thanks to the dimension reacting with his ectoplasmic signature, and, since he never stayed for long in the zone, his lair was still far from being finished; obviously, he didn't really care because he still lived in the human world. The same thing applied to Danielle, and, according to Clockwork, the best way to help her was staying at the Ghost Zone until her lair was done so she could have a place to gain power and finally stabilize her body.

"I'm sorry, Danielle," Clockwork, morphing into an elder ghost, turned slightly to look at his companion, "Living in different times at all moment, I tend to forget how it feels to be stuck on the regular chronological sequence."

"In other words, how bored can you get after a very short time," Danielle pointed, making Clockwork, who now was on his childish form, to chuckle slightly. He wouldn't admit it openly, but his job was so absorbing he never allowed himself to have a lot of company, so having the girl around was a major source of amusement for him.

"Yes, you are right. Tell you what; I can transport you to the lair of some other ghost so you can play a little as long as you promise not getting out of there until I pick you up."

"Sure!" Danni smiled widely, and then started thinking, "Let's see… Youngblood is kind of funny, for a little brat, I mean, but the last time he told me about something he's building at his lair, so guess I shouldn't disturb whatever he is doing. And Dora is very nice, but I already visited her last week… and I really don't want to visit Ember and Wulf!"

"I thought you liked them."

"Yes, but after an hour or so they start glancing to each other and doing those flirty faces, and I feel a little guilty for forcing them to watch over me when they could be doing… things that I shouldn't see, or even imagine."

"And that they are doing right this minute." Clockwork smiled slyly, making Danni to arch an eyebrow; living with someone who could tell what you're doing at every time wasn't always easy, "How about Frostbite?"

"Cool! Snow boarding, here I go!" The girl exclaimed in happiness; Clockwork nodded, and used his power to create a portal leading right into the yeti ghost's lair.

"Tell him I send my greetings; I'll pick you up in three hours, fifty minutes, and seventeen seconds."

"How about giving me a watch this time?"

"You broke the last one."

"It was Poindexter's fault, not mine! He wanted to check out how it worked; geeks." Danni rolled her eyes and sighed at the last part, but returned to her smile a moment later, and, after thanking Clockwork, jumped at the portal, that disappeared a moment later.

Clockwork sighed and looked down for a moment. It was easy for him to watch every event at any time, and at times manipulating them, but sometimes he hated himself for not revealing some important details to Danny, and, lately, to the girl as well, especially since, even if not knowing it, Danielle was doing a service to her "brother" by befriending some of his former enemies, eliminating a few menaces. He knew his manipulation was for the greatest good, but it didn't mean less suffering or danger for his protégés.

Clockwork, back on his regular form, turned back to his monitors, watching the event he had been waiting for happening today. One of its players was now moving around The Ghost Zone, looking everywhere; he was a tall and well built man, apparently on his late forties, with a little goatee beard, using a black uniform. Like Danny, his skin wasn't blue, green, or totally white, as it happened with most ghosts; it was a regular pale human color.

The man groaned in annoyance after checking another of the many doors floating around the spectral dimension. He closed it angrily, and turned to check another one, when another player appeared to do his part; small, yes, but primordial to the drama that was about to occur.

"Random traveling around The Ghost Zone is a clear violation of rule eighteen, section B, paragraph three." Walker talked in his severe tone, as several of his guards positioned themselves around the bearded man, their weapons ready to strike.

"I don't know about your rules!" The man growled, adopting a fighting stance, "I don't even belong here! I just want to leave this place once and for all!"

Walker looked at his soon-to-be prisoner, and pointed at him with his open hand, that started glowing slightly. The warden ghost frowned.

"You are right." Walker commented, lowering his hand, "You are no ghost; your place isn't here, and the presence of corporeal world's objects is forbidden, including unauthorized personal…"

"I was forced in here!" The man roared, yet calmed down a little after giving a second look to the weapons aimed at him, "I hate this place, and I just want to leave as soon as possible."

"Fine then… Bullet!" Walker directed to his second-in-command, a one-eyed ghost with a long cape and sinister face, "Show this man the way back to the human world, and get sure he stays there."

"Alright, sir," Bullet replied, and then motioned the man to follow him. The stranger nodded, and followed the ghost, getting an evil smirk.

Back at Clockwork's headquarters, the time ghost rubbed his chin, turning into a teenager.

"Time for a minor intervention," Clockwork said to himself as grabbing some of his time medallions. Even if knowing Danielle was sure to accept his offer to go playing, which gave him the chance to act without her knowing, he secretly was glad she had accepted so easily. Danny's next challenge was one she wasn't allowed to help him, at least, not yet.

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Valerie, Sam and Tucker are here," Damon Grey knocked at his daughter's bedroom door. The girl opened it after a few seconds, her shirt totally sweated and her hair a mess.

"Val, what were you doing in there?" Damon arched an eyebrow at the girl, who simply shrugged.

"Just working out a little, Dad," Valerie replied, and then lowered a little her voice. "Relax; I promised to stop going hunting and just use the weaponry if by any chance there's a ghostly attack at the place I am." Valerie exited the bedroom, and waved hello to Tucker and Sam.

"We can return in a while if you want, you know, so you can take a bath or something." Tucker offered.

"Nah, it's okay. I'll just change the shirt and wash a little." Valerie replied, "I mean, Danny is about to arrive, and I don't want him or you guys to wait for me."

"About to arrive, uh?" Sam folded her arms and gave Val a knowing look, making her to blush a little.

"Okay, I have to go. See you later, Val," Damon gave his daughter a little kiss at the cheek and went to the exit door, "Feel at home, you two, and keep an eye on my daughter."

"If I do that, Danny might blast me." Tucker whispered to Valerie, who chuckled a little while Sam rolled her eyes as Mister Grey closed the door.

"I doubt it, Tucker… he heard you, and you are still in one piece." Sam pointed, making Tucker to get a confused look. Valerie smiled and cleared her throat.

"Make yourself visible, Ghost."

"Funny how a word loses its hurting effect when saying it nicely." Danny's voice was heard, and, a moment later, turned visible… showing a few lipstick spots on his face and his neck.

"Wait, you mean… you two at her room… you are my hero, Danny!" Tucker exclaimed, as Danny and Valerie got sheepish smiles and Sam sighed.

"Hey, we were just making out, Tuck… a lot, yes, but nothing more." Danny explained while Valerie cleaned the lipstick from his face.

"Invisibility; the ultimate way for romantic interaction right in the father-in-law's nose," Sam glared at the couple, yet it wasn't as intense as a few weeks ago. Sam finally had accepted that Danny and Valerie were deeply in love, so much they actually revealed themselves to each other the same night, plus she actually liked to have a female friend besides her grandmother and Jazz, but it didn't mean she was entirely comfortable with their displays of affection.

Valerie changed her shirt, washed, and then brushed her hair at her bedroom while Danny made himself a little more presentable at the living room; after a few minutes, the four teens were sitting around the coffee table, drinking some sodas, while discussing a very important issue.

"I think you really should tell your secret to your parents, Danny." Sam pointed to her friend, who sighed and rubbed his temples.

"I almost did it yesterday, but when I entered the lab Dad was testing The Fenton Machine Gun… in his words, '_shoots about 500 blasts in ten_ _seconds_', and that kind of ruined my good disposition."

"But your parents know and love you, Danny," Valerie said while placing a hand on her boyfriend's shoulder, "I mean, I was the one who despised the air you fly through, and all that disappeared pretty fast and turned into something great."

"I know, Val, but, as much as you hated my ghostly self, you turned into a hunter like, a year ago or so, while my parents had been obsessed with ghost hunting their entire lives." Danny replied.

"And they had known you your whole life, and that counts as well." Sam added.

"Plus, you have Jazz on your side, and if anyone can reason with your parents, it's your sister." Tucker entered the debate, "Maybe we should discuss this with her too."

"We had been talking about that for a while now," Danny explained, "And she kind of agrees with you guys, but I still feel a little nervous. Maybe I should wait until they realize Phantom isn't a bad guy before revealing. Not to mention that, the moment I do it, I might need to tell about all the dangers we face on a regular basis, and also convince them to keep their cool around Vlad."

"Tell me about it," Valerie groaned, "When you told me that wacko was manipulating me the whole time, well, I was pretty tempted to give him an enema with my ecto blaster."

"I like how you think." Sam grinned at Val's idea, making her to smile as well.

"Remind me to never get on you two's bad side." Tucker gulped at Valerie and Sam's look.

"Anyway, Vlad already got a little lesson with that missile we sent to Wisconsin." Danny chuckled, "Not to mention the problems Skulker surely had when Vlad realized he was among Mister Hunter's weapon's programmed targets." The other teens laughed a little at Danny's comment as images of Skulker's punishment ran on their imagination.

"Back to the topic here…" Sam froze as a statue, as well as her companions. Actually, no living creature or ghost on Amity could move at all. The Goth moved and talked again a few seconds later, but stopped when noticing the medallion hanging from her neck, just like the ones her friends had as well.

"Clockwork!" Danny, Sam and Tucker said at the same time, looking at the ghost in the middle of the room. Valerie shook her head, truly impressed; Danny had already told her about the specter, but still it was very surprising to watch him appear apparently from nowhere, changing his age in front of her eyes every couple of seconds.

"Hello, Danny. Tucker. Samantha. Miss Grey, I assume you know about me, but let me introduce properly; Clockwork, Time Guardian; glad to meet you." The ghost extended his hand at the girl, who nodded and shook it.

"Is Danni okay?" Danny got a worried expression; Clockwork wasn't known for making social visits.

"She is fine, Danny, and I'm glad to inform you her lair is almost completely formed, so she will have a place to get stable and heal properly." Clockwork smiled at Danny, yet got a serious look a moment later, "I came to warn you; a very powerful enemy is about to arrive from The Ghost Zone, one your powers and weapons might prove ineffective against."

"What kind of ghost is it?" Danny got his all-business tone and look.

"He is no ghost."

"Excuse me, but, being a ghost isn't like, a requisite to be at The Ghost Zone?" Sam got a slightly puzzled expression, just like her companions.

"Yes, it is, that's why Walker is kicking him out and back into the corporeal realm." Clockwork explained, his expression becoming a lot more serious, "He isn't from this planet, actually."

"Hold it! You mean this guy is an alien?" Tucker wide opened his eyes.

"Yes, he is, and a very dangerous one," Clockwork continued, "So dangerous his own people decided he was just too risky to lock him at a regular prison, and sent him and his followers to another dimension where he would be powerless."

"The Ghost Zone." Danny frowned.

"In there, he isn't really dangerous because, since he isn't a specter, he can't touch a thing or drain power from The Ghost Zone to develop new skills; the zone gives him some little energy that keeps him alive and unchanged, like a fountain of perpetual youth, but that's all. However, the moment he arrives to the corporeal realm and to this planet in particular, he'll be nearly unstoppable. Luckily, his followers abandoned him long time ago, tired of his abusive leadership and past defeats, so, for now, he is alone, but that's just one of the few advantages you'll have against him."

"And what other advantages we'll have?" Valerie asked.

"You'll not be alone against him, but you'll need to stand on your own against this enemy for a while until the cavalry arrives, and that will be pretty difficult." Clockwork said as looking at Danny at the eye, "I'm sorry can't reveal more, but if you survive this threat, future will get some major improvements on the long term."

Danny sighed and nodded; he knew his friend meant well, and usually Danny learned a lot from Clockwork and his little tests, but that didn't mean he liked solving his puzzles and facing danger, especially if risking his friends' lives as well, especially knowing that, from Clockwork's point of view, the 'long term improvements' could happen in a way distant future, so Danny wasn't sure if he would eventually see them.

"I have to go now; one last advice, to the three of you," Clockwork directed to the pure humans at the room, "Danny is the only one here who can, at least, resist this villain's attacks for a while, so I'm suggesting you to help from behind the scenes and not facing the enemy directly. I'm serious here; this guy is as powerful as Danny's evil future self, and is impervious to almost anything."

"When will he arrive?" Sam asked after a few seconds of silence.

"By the moment I leave so the time can move normally… he'll already be at Fenton Works' basement."

Xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

The man walked out of the Fenton Portal, taking a deep breath. It had been a long time since he breathed a normal atmosphere, and was glad for it. Then, he walked around the lab, giving a fast check to everything; he recognized a few chemicals from a shelf, and improvised a little home-made bomb. The man threw it against the side of the lab that had the most blasters on it, and then dashed upstairs.

**BOOOM!**

The man grinned evilly when reaching the house's living room. His smile grew bigger when looking at the window, noticing it was day time, and touched the glass. The man closed his eyes as his pale skin became slightly tanned and his body slowly filled up with energy.

At the street, Jack, Maddie, and Jazz parked the Fenton RV just at the front door. They got alerted by the vehicle's surveillance system that something had happened at the lab, and were more than concerned about the possibility of an intrusion.

"There's a fire at the basement!" Maddie exclaimed while pointing at the thin smoke column coming out from the house.

"A pyromaniac ghost!" Jack growled and he and Maddie took two blasters out from their uniforms.

"Or maybe it was just an accident with unstable chemicals… like that Fenton Gun Powder stuff you were working on last month." Jazz, still at the vehicle, rolled her eyes, noticing the RV's alarm wasn't detecting any ghostly presence around.

**CRUMBLE!**

The Fentons wide opened their eyes at the man who jumped out from the house by destroying a wall.

"Freeze right there, you ectoplasmic fiend!" Jack snapped at him while he and his wife aimed at the intruder.

"You think your ridicule weapons can stop me?" The man got a wicked smile, slowly advancing at the couple.

"You asked for it!" Maddie exclaimed, and she and Jack started shooting at him.

**PTANG! PTANG! PTANG! PTANG! PTANG!**

"Funny; it tickles," The man laughed as the blasts bounced on his chest and forehead. The couple got shocked expressions, and, a second later, the stranger moved at an inhuman speed, grabbing the blasters from their hands, and destroying them effortlessly.

"Don't worry; this will only hurt… a lot." The man drew back his fist, ready to hit Jack, but couldn't connect thanks to a well placed lightning-like attack.

**YEEEEAAAARGGGH!**

"Stay away from my parents, you creep!" Jazz growled as activating practically all the vehicles' weaponry. Several blasters appeared at the sides, front, and roof of the RV, all aiming at the intruder. Jack and Maddie, taking advantage of their daughter's distraction, dashed away so the girl could attack the now leaned man.

"No… I'm not strong enough… not yet." The man groaned when looking at the weapons. Jazz activated all the blasters at the same time.

**KRRRAAAAABBBLLLLLAAAAAMMMM!**

"Well done, Jazziepants!" Jack smiled at the huge smoke cloud that now was where the man originally was standing. Jazz sighed in relief but kept the weapons on position, just in case.

"Jack, look!" Maddie pointed up, and Jack gasped. The man was hovering over the RV, and seemed ready to attack.

"JAZZ, GET OUT OF THERE!"

Luckily, Jazz spotted the man just in time to jump out from the vehicle right before the man dived at high speed against it.

**BOOOM!**

"JAZZ!" Jack and Maddie ran next to Jazz, who was thrown away by the explosion. Luckily, she was alive, but got more than a few burns and bruises.

At that moment, all the neighbors ran out of their houses because of the commotion, and, knowing the Fentons were involved, it could only be related with ghosts or one of Jack's inventions gone wrong; this time, however, it was none of that.

Everyone gasped at the humanoid figure walking out from the destroyed and flaming vehicle. The man was totally undamaged, and even seemed comfortable, as if walking at a park during a sunny day; he then hovered a few feet over the crowd, directing to the people on an authoritarian tone.

"Your lives no longer belong to yourselves. From now on, I'm your one and only true master. You will obey me, and do my will. You will kneel."

"KNEEL BEFORE ZOD!"


	2. Ghost vs Alien

**- Ghost versus Alien.**

Everyone looked at the hovering man in shock and fear. Obviously, he was quite powerful, and, even if Amity's citizens were already used to ghost attacks, this guy seemed to be as dangerous as the spectral army that invaded the city just a few months ago.

The self-proclaimed new owner of Amity turned back when hearing police cars' sirens. The man got a snobbish expression, as if the officers were less than nothing for him.

"Alright, clown, if you know what's best for you, get down here and put your hands where we can see it!" A sergeant directed to Zod while him and his companions aimed at him from different angles.

"A god doesn't take orders from insects," Zod replied, getting his wicked smile back, and raising his hands, "but, just for fun… don't lose sight of my hands, you primitive fools."

The alien dashed to the ground, and then hit it with both palms. The result was a powerful shockwave that sent the officers and every other person still around him several feet back in the air; actually, the impact was so powerful it also turned the cars upside-down.

"Ouch. This Zod guy isn't playing." A random man said to nobody in particular while rubbing his head. Zod turned at his direction, glaring at the man.

"For now on, you and everyone else will address me by my title; General Zod!"

**BLAST!**

The alien moved back a few steps, surprised by the powerful energy beam that hit his head, as everyone else turned to see another hovering figure right over them.

"Okay, General, unless you want to see a war here, you'll better leave now; and while you do it, how about doing something nice, and giving E.T. a ride home?"

"The Ghost Boy!" Jack exclaimed, feeling how his natural ghost-hunting instinct was kicking in; however, his fatherly one was far stronger, and remained next to Maddie to protect Jazz, who was barely conscious; the shockwave wasn't good for her already injured anatomy.

"Very impressive, kid," Zod directed to Danny, rubbing his chin and slowly hovering to the halfa's level, "but you'll need something better to fight me. If you are smart, you'll now swear loyalty to me, instead of getting crushed as everyone opposing will soon be."

"What's up with you megalomaniac villains always trying to recruit me? Sorry, Vader, but I'm not joining The Dark Side." Danny snapped back, and then gave a fast glance to his family, noticing Jazz's state, which made him really furious, getting an intense glow on his eyes, "And I swear that if that girl is hurt, I'll perform an alien vivisection right here and now!"

"You can try… if you survive this!"

**WHAM!**

The general moved at super speed, surprising Danny with a powerful ramming attack.

**CRACK! CRASH! WHAM! CRAMBLE! WHOOM!...**

The boy was sent through the walls of five buildings behind him before his instinct made intangible his body to avoid another hit. Danny shook his head and turned solid again while rubbing his chest and back.

"Okay, guess he didn't like the vivisection's comment." Danny said in a pained voice.

"You survived; quite interesting." Danny turned behind, spotting Zod hovering a few feet over him, his arms at his back and giving Danny an arrogant look.

"Yes, I had made a habit of it." Danny replied, his fists glowing with ectoplasmic energy, "And I also have a tendency of kicking nasty guys' butts!"

Danny shot a powerful energy beam against Zod, who crossed his arms in front of him to resist the impact. Unlike previous Danny's attack, this one hardly moved the general from his place.

"I can figure my resistance had surprised you as well," Zod said to the stunned boy once the beam dissipated, "Then, you might get even more surprised when knowing that the longer I stay in your pitiful planet, the stronger I'll become!"

"You think this is a spa, or something?" Danny finally reacted, and started shooting several blasts at his opponent. Zod blocked them effortlessly, but, at a certain point he had to cover his face from a particularly large blast, being the chance Danny was waiting for to give Zod a little ramming attack of his own.

**POW!**

The halfa shook his hands in pain because of the villain's extremely hard skin, but smiled slightly when Zod hit the side of a building.

"How you dared to do that to your General?" Zod growled at Danny.

"Simple; I'm now fighting with my brain… but looking at you, it seems saying _'military_ _intelligence'_ is a contradiction." Danny replied smugly, making Zod to growl ever louder. The alien took a little impulse, and dashed against Danny again.

Without hurting him.

The alien hit the building behind Danny, surprised at how the boy simply allowed him to pass through his body.

"Maybe I can't hurt you that much, but you can't touch me if I don't want to." Danny said while preparing another ecto-blast.

"I see; attacking you is like fighting the wind," Zod smiled slyly at Danny, "but attacking me is like facing a hurricane!"

Zod took a deep breath, and then blew at Danny with the power of a Category Four tornado. Danny, surprised, couldn't turn intangible on time, and hit another building.

"This is getting monotonous… not to mention painful." Danny thought out loud as trying to keep his conscience because of the last attack, as virtually every citizen in Amity was now following the battle; those who weren't doing it directly, by looking at the TV, thanks to several reporters and cameramen who appeared a few minutes ago.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Amity's newscast was now broadcasted all over the nation, getting the attention of millions of people; the place was famous as The Most Haunted Place on Earth, and because of that the most important news' services were always attentive to whatever happening there.

Including the crew at The Daily Planet.

"Great Caesar Ghost," Perry White, Chief Editor, looked at the large screen located at the redaction, alongside several of his people. He then reacted and did what he does best; barking orders.

"Okay, people, move on! Olsen, I want all the footage we have of that ghost boy! Lane, call your contacts in Amity for any information they have! Kent… hey, where's Kent?"

"He is already on his way there, Perry." Lois Lane said to her boss, getting a discreet smile when turning her back on him.

"That's what I want from all of you! Come on, we have work to do!" Perry kept barking orders totally ignorant of the fact one of his best reporters was now currently heading to the building's rooftop, and not precisely to enjoy Metropolis' view.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Danny avoided another of Zod's attacks thanks to his phasing powers, but fighting back was getting harder by the second. As the alien declared, his strength and speed was increasing, so Danny hardly had time to blast or punch him a few times between his intangibility's moments, and Zod was quite far from being really injured.

"Give up, weak creature," Zod groaned at Danny, moving a few feet away from him, "It's obvious your powers are no match for mine."

"And it's obvious you hadn't seen all my powers." Danny's hands got a pale glowing around them, and then shot a freezing ray against his enemy, so powerful it caught Zod in an extremely thick ice block that fell down to earth.

**CRABOOM!**

The impact produced a crater and shattered the ice, so Zod had no problems to break out of his prison, but he still was slightly stunned by the impact. Danny took his chance, and repeated the attack at maximum power, so the alien was caught inside an iceberg a split second later.

"Thanks again, Frostbite." Danny smiled as landing next to the iceberg, panting slightly. He then looked at Zod inside the ice, his face with a furious gesture, and his eyes…

"They are glowing?" Danny moved back, surprised at the bright red appearing at the alien's eyes. The iceberg started shattering, and thick vapor's columns appeared from various points of the fractured surface.

**BOOOOOMMM!**

Danny was sent against a parked car by the explosion of vapor and ice in front of him. Zod, his eyes still glowing red, approached him slowly with a murderous glare.

Danny, more than slightly scared, turned intangible as his enemy shot a heat vision's attack… and remembered a little bit too late that his parents once told him about the effect extreme temperatures have over ectoplam.

"**YEEEEAAARGH!"** Danny cried in pain as the beam practically burned him from the inside out, forcing him back to solid.

"Not so cocky now, aren't we?" Zod, his eyes normal again, leaned to grab Danny by his collar and raise him over his head so everyone around them could see the boy's ached expression.

"You are nothing but a kid trying to play a men's game."

"BUT YOU ARE NO MAN, YOU MONSTER!"

Zod turned to see a red outfitted female, riding some sort of sled, heading against him. The alien eyes' got their red glowing and aimed at the huntress.

"Oh, no, you don't!" Danny reacted and shot a blast at his enemy's head; despite being badly injured, and the blast not being one of his bests, Danny was so close to Zod the alien really felt the attack, at least enough to make his optic beam to miss the target.

Valerie aimed at Zod with her biggest and more powerful blaster, about the size of a bazooka; since she didn't want to hurt Danny by accident, the girl shot at the villain's feet, which was enough for him to loose his grip on the boy.

"Here, catch!" Valerie passed next to Zod, and, in a pretty fast movement, tossed her weapon at him and grabbed Danny. The general, by mere impulse, caught the blaster, distracting himself from his prey as Valerie, still holding Danny, shot a series of blasts from her hand weapon while speeding away.

"Those shots will not hurt him." Danny said weakly.

"I'm not aiming at him, but at the blaster!"

One of Valerie's shots connected with her target.

**KRABOOOOM!**

"I stopped using that blaster because of a minor leak; nothing too big, but if getting a good impact, well…" Valerie commented to Danny, who got a little smile, as helping him stand up on the sled without lowering the speed.

"Standard yet silly question… are you okay?" Valerie asked her boyfriend, extremely concerned, "You look as if just had fought World War III on your own."

"And I feel the same way…" Danny said, holding his head, "Valerie… you have to get out of here… go with Sam and Tuck…"

"They are with your parents at your home, and don't worry, Jazz is more or less fine, nothing serious." Valerie then looked at Danny at the eye, "And I didn't stop hunting you just to lose my boyfriend that easy because of a science fiction's movie reject."

"How touching!" Valerie and Danny gasped when looking at Zod effortlessly flying next to them, despite the sled moving at almost 300 miles per hour.

Valerie aimed at the villain with her hand's weapon, but Zod stopped her by grabbing the girl's wrist, snapping both the weapon and her bones.

** "AAARGH!"**

"VAL!" Danny wide opened his eyes as Valerie screamed in pain. Zod released her, and smirked at the girl.

"So, you aren't as resistant as your friend, I see," Zod said in an amused tone, and then smirked at the boy. "Maybe your girl cannot fly either; care if I prove my theory?"

Zod grabbed the sled, stopping its flight, and almost making Danny and Valerie to fall. He then flew back downtown, where a large amount of people, including the news crew, had congregated to see the battle.

**CRACK!**

Zod broke the sled in two perfect halves, and then used his powerful breath against Danny and Valerie, so the boy (who was hugging the girl to protect her) couldn't use his own flight ability to stop both teens from falling like rocks to the ground.

"They're falling! Everybody cover!" Paulina, who was among the crowd, yelled in fear, and she and several other persons dashed away from the site, they guessed, Danny and Valerie were about to impact.

"No… close your eyes, and don't move!" Danny yelled to Valerie as summoning his ghostly shield around them and moving slightly to use his own body to protect Val from the hit. Valerie hugged him as hard as she could and buried her face on his chest.

**WHAAAM!**

Once the dust cleared, the people, scared, moved around the fallen figures. Valerie was on top of Danny, barely conscious, while the boy, totally bruised by now, moved slightly, trying to focus his sight and get his voice back.

"Valerie… we are still alive?"

"You are the half-ghost… you tell me." Valerie replied in pain. Danny sighed in relief, glad for protecting her, and, at that moment, he ran out of his few remaining energy.

The bright light circle appeared at his waist, and then separated in two, moving all over his body, changing his pretty damaged superhero's uniform for very messy and almost totally ripped regular clothing, and his white hair and pale look for regular black hair and bruised yet normal skin the same moment his green eyes changed to blue. Everyone around the couple gasped in surprise, including the people getting everything on camera.

"_The Strange Case of Doctor Jekyll and Mister Hyde!"_ Lancer, who was at the place as well, exclaimed as recognizing Phantom as one of his students.

"Fentonio is Phantom?" Dash, right next to Lancer, gasped at the scene, not believing what he just had seen.

"A simple kid," Zod landed over Danny and Valerie, making the people around to move several steps back. The alien leaned to grab Valerie by her hood, and ripped it as if it was simple paper, so the girl's head was now entirely visible, "And, obviously, a simple girl as well."

"Valerie?" Star shoved Paulina aside to get a better look; there was no doubt. Amity's mysterious huntress was former A-list's member Valerie Grey.

The people watching everything at home were just as surprised, especially the ones at Fenton Works.

"Danny is The Ghost Boy?" Jack finally got his voice back after a few seconds of staring in disbelief at his living room's television. Maddie, who was kneeled next to Jazz (who was resting at the coach) attending her wounds, dropped the antiseptic's bottle, and covered her mouth with both hands without losing sight of the screen. Sam and Tucker gave each other a fast look before turning back to watch the screen, getting their most concerned expressions ever. Jazz rolled her eyes at the screen, and took a deep breath, closing her eyes a moment later as a single tear rolled down her cheek while hearing at Zod directing to the people.

"Let this be an example," Zod said while grabbing both teens by their collars, showing them to the crowd, "for anyone who dares defying me. This is the fate of everyone standing on my way!"

The villain flied up in the sky, holding his young prisoners, until he was about a mile over Amity. He then moved them just in front of him; Valerie and Danny were hardly breathing because of the grip on their necks, but heard perfectly Zod's last phrase.

"Now… fly."

And Zod simply dropped them.

Danny and Valerie fell one aside the other. Without her sled, and Danny unable to go ghost at the moment, this was a sure death for both of them. Soon, their lives started flashing in front of them.

Three thousand feet…

At age 3, Danny and Valerie met each other at the kindergarten, being not really close back then.

Two thousand feet…

At age 6, Danny started drawing spaceships on a regular basis while Valerie's mother, a karate instructor, started training her.

One thousand five hundred feet…

At age 8, Danny met Tucker when they both hide under the same table because of a mean bully looking for them, and Valerie cried as she never did before at her mother's funeral.

Eight hundred feet…

At ten, Danny and Tucker befriended Sam when they had to do a school project together, and Valerie won her first karate tournament.

Five hundred feet…

At twelve, Danny became Dash's favorite victim and was thrown inside a locker for the first time, and Valerie became part of the popular crew, befriending Star on the process.

Three hundred feet…

At fourteen, Danny got his powers, and Valerie became a ghost hunter, trying to eliminate him at any cost.

Two hundred feet…

Less than two months ago, Danny and Valerie made peace, the same night they became an official couple… and never were happier.

One hundred feet…

Danny and Valerie held hands, getting ready for the worst and muttering a silent _"I love you" _to each other with practically the whole nation either looking at them or covering their faces.

Zod was enjoying the show, and started descending slowly, still keeping his standing position and smiling in anticipation, when…

WHOOOOOSSSSSHHHHH!

A red and blue blur caught Danny and Valerie on mid air, disappearing from sight. Everyone gasped in surprise, except Zod, who got a furious look.

"_David Copperfield_!" Lancer said in shock the moment his students disappeared. Everyone started looking around, until Star pointed at something slowly approaching them.

"Look, up in the sky!"

Covering both teens with his red cape, and descending at the middle of the crowd, a muscular man wearing blue spandex gave Danny and Valerie a concerned look, and then deposited them gently at the ground. He then looked up at Zod, determination all over his face, and a wide red S on a yellow pentagon on his chest becoming perfectly visible to everyone.

Zod glared at the man, spitting his alien name with evident disgust and hate.

"Kal-El."


	3. The World's Worst

-** The World's Worst.**

"Damn! I thought my problem was solved!"

Sitting on a large couch at his mansion's main room, Vlad Masters growled in annoyance when watching on screen how Superman rescued both Danny and Valerie. Ever since he knew about Danny's powers, most of the villain's efforts were focused on convincing the boy to join him, or, if not possible, creating his own ghost-human hybrid, obtaining at last the son/pupil destiny denied him when Maddie married Jack Fenton. However, now that the boy's identity was revealed on national TV, there was nothing restraining him to reveal the billionaire's secrets as well, namely his own ghostly powers and how he used them to make his fortune, and his illegal attempts of human (or half-human) cloning.

Now, Vlad's only chance to escape imprisonment at the Guys in White's facilities was for Danny to die before spilling the true about him; Vlad was aware about Jazz, Tucker, Sam and, surely, Valerie knowing his secrets as well, but he could handle them easily either by elimination or death threats. Danny, with his increasing abilities and growing number of allies among the spectral world, was the only real menace for Vlad (another reason for trying so hard to recruit him to his side), and his destruction was vital for the villain's welfare and, possibly, even his survival.

"What a shame… Daniel could be an amazing pupil if not being so stubborn." Vlad thought out loud while watching Superman leaving the teens at the crowd's care. Another of his dreams was dying right in front of him.

"**_Vlad, sweetie, I have a report for you."_** Vlad's main computer communicated with him, imitating Maddie's voice almost perfectly.

"I have no time for that now." Vlad replied, a little bit too harshly.

"**_Sorry, Vlad, but you requested me to inform immediately about any event that might help on the development of a successful clone."_**

The computer got Vlad's full attention.

"Report."

"**_The special cameras you donated to Amity's TV station taped Danny at the moment he changed back to human, and I registered all the information they got. As you can remember, the last details needed to make a perfect cloning of Danny are…"_**

"His transformation to both his ghostly and human's personas." Vlad got a thoughtful expression, and then smirked evilly, "Of course! With that information, Danny's existence will no longer be necessary to create my own perfect halfa! Now I just need those cameras to get his transformation to ghost, and, since he no longer has a secret identity, he'll do it in public if needed!"

Vlad transformed into his own Dracula-like ghostly form, and phased through his floor, reaching a hidden sub-basement under his mansion. On the last months, Vlad paid for a special subway-type transportation that could take him from his home to Amity in a few minutes.

"Dear, prepare my transportation. I'll pick up something from the lab before going." Vlad told his computer as approaching his lab's heavily shielded door. The evil halfa pressed a few commands on a keyboard at the wall, and the door opened; for maximum security, the door had its own ghost-deflecting shield to prevent Danny to ever enter in there, so even Vlad couldn't just phase through it. Once at his lab, Vlad approached a little hidden vault, and placed his hand on it, activating a DNA scanner; the vault opened, and Vlad took a little metallic box out of it.

Vlad dashed out of the lab, and entered the transport; a few seconds later, it was moving at tremendous speeds towards his destination. Vlad grinned widely, amazed at himself and how, even at desperate times he still was smart and resourceful enough to get the best of the situation.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

"Dude, is he Superman?" Kwan asked Dash, stunned.

"No, he is Aquaman." Dash, not losing sight of the hero and the fallen teens, replied sarcastically.

"I thought Aquaman was blond and just talked to fish."

Everyone around Kwan ignored his silly comment, all focused on Superman. The Man of Steel, without losing sight of Zod, directed to Lancer, who was the closest to him.

"They are fine, just a little bruised, and the girl has a broken hand. Please, attend them." Superman heard a silent 'yes' coming from the bald teacher, and then hovered a few feet over the ground; thanks to his practice on this kind of rescues, Superman handled to catch both teens at high speed without hurting them, using his body to absorb most of the impact. After giving a fast glance to Danny and Valerie, Superman moved at an amazing speed, stopping right in front of his enemy, both of them hovering just a few feet higher than Amity's tallest buildings.

"So, you finally appeared, Kal-El." Zod clenched his fists.

"I don't know how you escaped The Phantom Zone, Zod, but I'll return you there permanently." Superman glared at him, "Now, despite what you did, I'm giving you options; we can do this without the usual beating if you give up and come peacefully; or we can do it the usual way."

"Here's my answer, son of Jor-El!"

Zod threw a lightning-speed punch against Superman's chin, who caught it at the last moment with his left hand while preparing his right fist.

"Then, we'll do this the hard way!"

**POW!**

Superman punched Zod, sending him a few dozen yards back. The villain growled and charged again; Superman blocked the punch crossing his arms in front of him, and moved back to avoid a karate-chop. Superman hit Zod's chest, and the villain took this chance to punch his enemy's face. Stunned, Superman couldn't avoid a couple of hits at his belly, and, when leaning, Zod hit the back of his neck with both fists. Superman fell several feet down, but recovered just in time to turn and catch Zod by his feet when the villain tried to kick him. The hero made a tornado-like movement, and, a second later, released Zod, sending him against a pretty tall building.

**CRAMBLE! CROOM! BROOCK!...**

Zod passed though three buildings, and, when not coming out from the last one, Superman dashed to continue his attack. He received a nasty surprise courtesy of Zod's heat vision that hit the hero's chest; however, Superman resisted it well, and counterattacked with his own optic attack, colliding with Zod's. The Kryptonians kept a steady power struggle for a few seconds, until Superman started gaining advantage and his heat vision overpowered the villain's, sending him out of the building because of the powerful impact.

Zod rubbed his eyes in pain, and, when recovering his sight, the first thing he saw was Superman's fist. The attack sent the villain almost 100 feet up in the air, but he was still far from defeated. Zod moved at super speed to avoid another hit, and Superman had to use his own to chase his enemy through Amity's sky.

Down at the street, Star was helping Valerie stand up, while Dash did the same with Danny; despite disliking Danny Fenton, the bully admired and respected Phantom, so decided to aid him. Once Danny recovered from the shock of receiving help from his tormentor, he looked up in the sky, just like everyone else; despite the distance at what the aliens were fighting, their hits were so powerful they made thunder-like noise every time they connected. At times, they moved so fast they disappeared from sight, just to reappear at a different and distant spot, one hitting the other, right before disappearing again.

Zod shook his head to recover from Superman's last hit, finally noticing something about his enemy's strategy; he was doing his best to keep the battle as high as possible and far away from the civilians. Zod got his evil grin, and then, pretending to be more injured than he really was, dropped himself to earth. Superman dashed to catch him, and, at the last moment, Zod attacked him with his super breath; this time, however, instead of a powerful yet simple wind, this was a freezing one, trapping Superman on an icy block.

**CRACK!**

Superman escaped from his prison a moment later, but that was all Zod needed to dash down, grinning when spotting what he was looking for.

"He is coming back!" A random man yelled in fear, but, before anyone could react, Zod landed and ran at super speed, grabbing a certain Latina girl.

"Hey, let me go!" Paulina screamed, but her voice was soon cut by Zod's grip on her throat. The villain then hovered a few feet over the crowd, waiting for his enemy, who moved in front of him, yet keeping his distance, a split second later.

"Your power is as impressive as usual, Kal-El, but your love for these animals makes you weak," Zod got an arrogant look while moving Paulina's face right next to his, "A young human female; the perfect hostage."

"Let her go, you coward!"

"A military lesson is to always keep an advantage over your enemy, Kal-El, and, as long as I have her, stupid earthling morals will keep you from attacking me."

The aliens keep eyeing each other, anger evident as both faces, but, in Superman's case, there was also a deep concern; as fast as he was, he knew that Zod's speed would allow him to break the girl's neck the moment he tried to rescue her.

Danny looked at the scene, and closed his eyes, summoning every single bit of his remaining energy, and, to Dash's surprise, turned invisible and phased through his arms. Danny became visible a few seconds later approaching Zod from behind, and phasing through his body; Zod felt how his hostage turned intangible the moment Danny touched her, and both him and the girl fell down.

"Why you… GAAAK!"

Superman lost no time and placed behind Zod as well, catching him in a wrestling grapple, holding his head at full strength. Zod struggled, trying to escape, but couldn't stop Superman from carrying him at high speed, gaining height again to finish the fight away from Amity.

Paulina rubbed her back and butt; Danny couldn't keep them intangible for long, so, the moment Zod released Paulina, both teens changed back to solid, hitting the ground.

"Ouch! That hurt!" Paulina talked in slight pain because of her throat ache; she then turned to see Danny, and tried to use her preppy tone, "Phantom, you saved me! I have to kiss… Phantom? Danny?"

Paulina got a worried expression when noticing Danny wasn't moving. Everyone moved around them for a fast check-up; Paulina moved aside when noticing Valerie approaching with Star's help. The huntress kneeled aside Danny, and turned him face-up; besides the multiple bruises he already got from fighting Zod, his nose was now bleeding, and he was breathing with obvious difficulty.

"Danny, if you die, I swear I'll kill you!" Valerie cried as shaking Danny, trying to wake him up.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

On his headquarters, Clockwork rubbed his chin, looking at the scene developing on screen. He then looked at one of his multiple watches, and whispered to himself.

"Three… Two… One…"

"CLOCKWORK!" The Time Guardian turned slightly to look at other screen, where Danielle, from Frostbite's realm, was angrily calling for him, "I know you are hearing me, and I know you know I was about to call! Take me back, now!"

Clockwork moved slightly his staff, creating a portal in front of the girl; Danielle was in front of him a few seconds later, clenching her fists.

"Frostbite has monitors too, you know?" Danni growled at him, "When I was supposed to know about Danny being in danger; at his funeral, or right before exhaling his last breath?"

"Look, I understand your anger, Danielle," Clockwork explained calmly, "But you had been living here for a while now, and you know about my duty and obligations; I can't change past events without risking future ones, and this particular battle was meant to occur."

Danielle relaxed a little, and sighed sadly. She had seen the time ghost working at times, and understood perfectly what he meant. The girl turned to see the right moment when Superman grabbed Zod and elevated away from the people.

"Well… I guess that now Superman is in Amity, everything will be alright."

"No, not yet," Clockwork stated, getting the girl's attention again, "actually, it will get more dangerous. Another major player is about to arrive, and even The Man of Steel will be at risk."

"Oh, great," Danni sighed, and got a determined look, "Send me there, Clockwork!"

"You aren't supposed to fight this time, Danielle," Clockwork explained, getting a slight smile, "but don't worry, you'll help Danny as well… on the right time."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Zod kept trying to escape Superman's grip, but it was useless. The general's battle training and dirty fighting allowed him to face his enemy, but Superman had more experience on the use of his abilities, and, since Zod had been receiving solar radiation just for a short time now, the hero's raw power was still superior to his.

Superman increased the pressure on his enemy's head and neck, planning to make him faint by lack of air. Zod's struggles were now getting weaker, and he was pretty close to unconscious now.

"Excuse me, gentleman," Superman heard a sinister voice coming from behind him, "but I have a business to deal with your friend here."

Vlad Plasmius, without knowing it, mimicked Danny's rescue on Paulina, phasing through Superman's body and making Zod intangible as well. The ghostly villain carried away the alien one at fast as possible, keeping themselves intangible while Superman chased them.

"You have your own problems, hero." Plasmius directed to Superman, who received three powerful ecto-blasts at his back. The hero turned to see three figures hovering over him, all of them identical to the vampire-looking specter.

The duplicates attacked Superman again, who crossed his arms in front of his chest to resist the multiple blasting. The hero used his super speed to escape the energy attack, and hit one of the specters, making him to disappear. The other two enemies looked worriedly at each other, and then started blasting Superman as hard and fast as possible. Superman avoided most of the attacks, preparing himself to reply.

While the hero kept fighting Vlad's duplicates, the original one turned Zod and himself tangible again. The alien criminal took a deep breath to fully recover from Superman's maneuver, and talked to Vlad in his usual arrogant look.

"What do you want from me, creature?"

"Ah, so you like to go right to the point; I like that," Vlad released Zod and grinned evilly at him, "Well, let's just say we have common enemies, and I want to propose you a little deal."

"I don't make deals with lesser beings."

"Neither do I, that's why I'm proposing something to you, and please, General, call me Plasmius," Vlad replied without losing his cool, "You see, that boy you were about to eliminate a few moments ago, well, I need him gone, and, because of previous deals, I can't do it directly; the same applies with a certain fat fool in orange suit."

"I think I know who are you talking about," Zod rubbed his chin, "So, you want me to do your dirty work; what's for me on this deal, and what stops me from tearing you apart at this moment?"

"Well, as you could notice, I have certain abilities, and, besides that, I'm a man with plenty of resources at my disposition," Plasmius explained, "including some information about your enemy and the ways to neuter him. Do this little deed for me, and I'll keep him busy and, probably, eliminate Superman for you, or at least leave so badly injured you'll be able to finish him yourself. All I ask for is that boy's demise and the same for the fat buffoon and everyone next to him, except his mate, a beautiful blue-outfitted woman."

"_My sweet Maddie, losing your husband and children the same day,"_ Vlad thought,_ "and, once this fool do his job, and I eliminate him as well, you'll accept my comforting shoulder to cry on, and finally marry me in gratitude… together, we'll raise our son, my perfect halfa!"_

"So, we have a deal, General?"

"If you can do what you claim, consider yourself among the lucky ones who'll have the honor to rule next to me." Zod answered after a few seconds of thinking about Vlad's offer.

"_At least, during your last five seconds of life, exactly what you'll have once Kal-El is gone; Zod doesn't follow orders, he gives them."_ Zod thought while getting his evil grin and shaking hands with his temporary ally.

Superman used his freezing breath on both duplicates, encasing them in ice, and then finished them with a powerful punch. By using his vision powers, the hero realized they weren't real living things, made entirely of energy, and therefore could use his full power against them without feeling remorse.Superman turned to see Zod and Plasmius diving back to Amity, so the hero dashed to move in front of them; the three fighters stopped on mid-air at a distance they were clearly visible for everyone looking up in the sky.

"Going somewhere you two?" Superman glared at the villains.

"You are the one who should go, my friend." Plasmius got a predatory look as motioning Zod to move back while taking the metallic box out from his belt, "You see, I am a business man, and I always try to plan ahead on every eventuality, including the possibility of facing you, so I acquired a little something a few years ago from a good fellow you might know. He gave this to me at a very fair prize on the condition of saying something when using it…"

"Greetings from Lex Luthor!" Vlad opened the box, revealing a little chunk of kryptonite. Superman, being in front of Vlad, received a slight dosage of radiation, yet it was enough to weak the hero and make him move several feet back to avoid poisoning.

"Ah, so this is as effective as everyone says," Vlad grinned, taking the mineral out from the box and holding it in front of his face, "But here's something that isn't common knowledge; the really interesting reaction this substance has on ectoplasm."

Vlad placed the kryptonite in the front part of his belt; a second later, his skin got an emerald glowing, and his eyes changed from red to bright green. Zod had to move away several more feet since he was feeling the radiation as well; obviously, he had underestimated this creature.

"Now, let's see if you can take this blast," Vlad aimed at Superman with his right palm, surprising him with a powerful beam.

"**UNNNGH!" **Superman yelled in pain, falling down because of the impact. The whole world gasped at the scene of Earth's mightiest hero facing his worst nightmare; a kryptonite-powered ghost!

"So, I'm doing my part," Vlad directed to Zod, "how about doing yours, partner?"

Zod was tempted to punish the specter for using that tone on him, but restrained, knowing he now had a clear advantage. The general decided to obey for now, knowing he would need to find a way to eliminate this creature after finishing Kal-El; on the mean time, he was glad Plasmius' only request at the moment was to eliminate another potential enemy.

At street level, Danny finally opened his eyes, looking at a sobbing yet slightly smiling Valerie; the girl hugged him, ignoring the terrible pain from her broken hand. Danny sighed in relief, and then looked up in the sky, like everyone but Valerie was doing it; he recognized Plasmius next to Zod and attacking Superman, knowing things could only get worse now.

Plasmius summoned a large amount of energy on both his hands, preparing a major blast against Superman, as Zod used his X-ray vision to locate the man Plasmius wanted him to destroy; Zod smirked when locating him right at the place where he arrived from The Phantom Zone, and took impulse to dash there the same moment Plasmius shot his attack, and Danny heard a familiar voice next to him.

"**TIME OUT!"**


	4. Heroes At Work

**  
**

**- Heroes at Work.**

Danny felt a familiar medallion on his neck, and turned his head to see both Danielle, who was using a medallion as well, and Clockwork. The boy then looked up and around him to see everyone frozen in time. Vlad's blast was on mid-way to hit Superman while Zod was already on a diving position heading to Danny's house; Valerie was still looking at him, one of her tears frozen right before touching his body, and everyone else looking either at the flying fighters or at him, all with concerned and/or scared expressions.

"Hello, Danny; sorry to say this, but you look terrible." Danielle kneeled next to her 'brother', rubbing his cheek slightly.

"And I feel even worse," Danny replied, and then looked at Clockwork, "How can I win this one? I don't know what Vlad did to himself, but it seems he can finish Superman, and there's no way I can defeat both him and Zod alone."

"The good news are that they aren't fighting at the same time; the bad ones are that Vlad just requested Zod to eliminate your father, sister and friends in exchange of Superman's demise," Clockwork explained, placing a hand over Danny's shoulder to prevent him to try going home, something he obviously was unable to do at the moment any way.

"Please, I have to know how to fight him, or a way to neuter his powers!" Danny begged his friend.

"As I told you, Zod is quite formidable; he is from Krypton, just like Superman, so a yellow sun's radiation gives him the same powers… super strength, speed, senses; but you said something a while ago when battling him that is quite true," Clockwork pointed, "You still have powers he hadn't fought yet, while you now what to expect from him."

"But I'm powerless now."

"I can help you with that," Danni smiled at him, "You see, the whole time my body had been stabilizing, I developed a new ability. I can transfer some of my energy to you and use it to heal any injuries; sure, I'll be a little tired after doing it, but, hey, you are my brother and that's the least I can do for you. Plus, my lair will soon be finished and I'll be able to recover whatever energy I need to use right now."

Danielle placed a hand on Danny's forehead, and, deciding to sacrifice a little more energy, placed the other on Valerie's wrist. The ghost girl closed her eyes, and a bright blue energy flowed from her hands, covering Valerie's hand and Danny's whole body.

"Kick his butt, bro," Danielle grinned at Danny as Clockwork smiled and made another movement with his staff.

"Time's back!"

Superman moved at high speed to avoid Vlad's attack that hit a building right below them; Zod dashed away to eliminate Jack and the people around him; the crowd screamed in awe and fear; and Valerie noticed, surprised, how her hand no longer ached.

"How this…" Valerie was cut by Danny giving her a fast kiss on her lips; the boy stood up a second later, his skin totally bruise-free and feeling stronger than ever, getting the attention of several people who were looking up a moment before.

"Clockwork and Danni sent their greetings," Danny smiled at her, and then clenched his fists and got a serious look, "GOING GHOST!"

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

At Fenton Works, everyone was following the fight with concern, fear, and excitement, all at once.

"Hey, that's the Wisconsin's ghost," Jack pointed at the screen, "What's that fiend doing here?"

"And why he is glowing that way?" Sam asked to no one in particular. Tucker jumped in front of the screen for a closer look.

"Oh, my… that stuff on his belt… I think is kryptonite!"

"Kryptonite?" Sam gasped, "The thing that weakens Superman?"

"Weakens, hurts, and, eventually, might kill him." Tucker turned to see his friend and Danny's family, secretly happy that his geeky knowledge could be useful.

"I'm more worried about where Zod might be right now," Maddie stated, and, in a perfect cue…

**BOOM!**

Zod landed at the living room, having passed through the rooftop and the top floor. Maddie hugged Jazz protectively as Sam and Tucker moved a few steps back and Jack charged against the alien, punching his chin and almost breaking his hand in the process.

"You unworthy human will have the privilege of being the first person I'll personally eliminate since I returned to the solid realm," Zod glared at Jack and gave him a little slap that sent the massive man through the air, landing the other side of the room. Jack rubbed the back of his head, and saw the alien lifting a couch over his head, ready to use it to hit Jack to death.

"Ready for round two, General?"

Everyone at the room turned to see Danny phasing through the wall at high speed, grabbing Zod to make him intangible as well, making the alien to drop the furniture, and carrying him out of the house. Danny took advantage of the surprise, and then dived at the ground, still holding the villain; Danny emerged a few seconds later, turning back to solid.

"Let's see if he likes turning tangible within 100 tons of rock."

Sam and Tucker ran out of the house to see their friend, who motioned them back. A few moments later, his friends and all humans two miles around, felt a slight earthquake; the Goth and the geek ran quickly for cover behind the charred wreck formerly known as The Fenton RV, while Danny flew a few feet away, looking at a growing crack on the pavement.

**KRAAABBOOOOM!**

Zod emerged slowly from the large crater at the middle of the street, covered in dust and rubble, and with a murderous expression. The moment Danny released him, the man turned back to solid, and the experience was extremely painful, even for someone nigh-invulnerable; only the high density molecules of his kryptonian physiology saved him from a sure death.

"You'll pay for this insolence!" Zod roared as charging his heat vision.

"Only if you get me!" Danny replied summoning his ecto-shield, covering his entire body in an energy sphere, deflecting the laser-like attack. "Come on, don't tell me big bad general can't take over a little energy shield; guess I should fight a stronger alien, like Alf or Marvin Martian."

Zod rammed Danny, sending him several feet up in the air, shield and all, like a giant green ball; Danny had to use his full power to keep the shield up, but was glad his teasing made Zod to forget about his family and focus on him. Zod groaned in annoyance, and flew at high speed next to Danny, hitting the shield with both fists, sending him through a couple of buildings yet the sphere remained. Zod, frustrated, dashed again to hit the energy ball several times, sending Danny all over Amity's sky.

"Wow! Alien Volleyball," Tucker exclaimed after a few seconds without losing sight of Danny being hit back and forth practically over his and Sam's heads. The Goth reacted, and ran inside the house, where Maddie was helping Jack stand up.

"Listen, everybody!" Sam got the adult Fentons' attention, "I know this whole thing is quite shocking, and I promise we'll explain everything later, but right now we must do something! Superman is the only one who can save Danny, and only we can save Superman!"

"Most of the arsenal got damaged in the fire, and the RV is destroyed; and don't even want to imagine the mess at the Operations Center since that guy used the rooftop to enter here." Jack looked down, sadly, feeling as useful as a chewing toy was to a toad.

"But we still have some weapons at the closet and our rooms, Jack!" Maddie pointed, making everyone, including Jazz (who needed some help from her mother) to move as fast as possible and search for any useful weapon left.

Tucker and Sam started looking at Danny's bedroom, but, besides a thermos, there wasn't anything else they could use, or at least thought that until Tucker looked under Danny's bed.

"Hey, Sam, look what I found!" Tucker got the girl's attention; she turned to see him and got a sly smile.

"Now, that's something we can use."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Superman avoided another of Vlad's shots, and replied with a heat vision's one. Vlad deflected it by forming one of his square-shaped shields that was green instead of the usual pink, with his left hand, as preparing another attack with his right one.

"It's really remarkable how you keep fighting despite obviously facing a far superior force, Superman," Vlad attacked again, with Superman barely avoiding it, "but your weakness is getting evident by now. You are not as fast as you were just a few minutes ago; my mere presence reduces your might, and it's just a matter of time before I succeed at what Luthor and so many others had failed."

Superman knew the specter was right. He was tempted to leave the battle and search for something to shield himself from the kryptonite radiation, but somehow he suspected Plasmius would force him back by attacking someone, as Zod did previously.

Vlad made a pause when hearing a slight beeping coming from a communicator hidden on one of his gloves, and smirked evilly; it was the signal his computer was sending to inform Danny had changed to ghost in front of the TV cameras, and his system had recorded it. Knowing that now his data were complete, Vlad got a satisfied expression, and returned to the battle by using his multiplication technique. Superman now had to fight four kryptonite-charged ghosts, shooting at him from multiple points; the hero couldn't avoid getting a few hits, the last one sending him against a building.

"I suppose it's good that almost everyone at Amity now has ghost-attack insurance," the four ghosts chorused, "I hope it also covers damage done by aliens on underwear."

Superman shook his head, and, noticing the four specters were very close to each other now, got an idea. The hero started flying in circles around them, gaining more and more speed as avoiding the series of blasts the specters were shooting.

"How disappointing, Superman! Your big strategy is trying to make me dizzy?" The Vlads laughed, but it was short-lived as noticing the mighty wind Superman was forming.

"**YYEEEEAAAAAAAAAAAAHHHHH..!"**

The specters were sent to the stratosphere because of the powerful red and blue tornado. Superman stopped after a few seconds, panting; the kryptonite had weakened him a lot, and, if not finding a way to fight back, Plasmius was sure to eliminate him.

"**_Superman!" _** The hero turned at the young female voice calling him, **_"If you can hear me, please follow my voice! My name is Sam Manson, friend of Danny Phantom! We know that ghost you're fighting, and have a way to help you!"_**

Superman used his telescopic vision to look at Vlad, who was fusing back with his duplicates at a long distance; he seemed to be stunned, but the hero knew he would be back to fight in a moment. Superman dived as fast as possible, following Sam's voice.

Vlad growled in anger, shaking his head to clear it; the evil halfa dashed down, and found Superman flying at street level, apparently looking for something or someone. Vlad realized he was heading to Fenton Works, so accelerated to stop the hero from getting on General Zod's way.

Sam was in front of Danny's house, holding a megaphone, and waved to Superman when spotting him. Luckily, as Tucker pointed, the hero's super hearing sense was still active despite being so badly hurt. Sam motioned him inside as Superman looked over his shoulder, watching Vlad approaching.

"Don't worry," Sam told the hero noticing him looking at a distance, "my friends already have a surprise from him."

Maddie then approached the duo, holding a little device that she gave to Superman.

"My husband and I had been working on a new battery for the ectoplasm guns," Maddie informed him, "A solar one."

Vlad saw Superman and Sam entering Fenton Works, and grinned evilly. Even if Zod hadn't finished Jack and Danny's friends, now Plasmius had the chance to do it personally.

"If you want something done, must do it yourself," Plasmius said to himself as landing and approaching the damaged house, not noticing the large orange suited man hidden at the alley.

"Take this, ectoplasmic menace!" Jack emerged, holding his last weapon that, luckily, survived Zod's fire; The Fenton Machine Gun!

**BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST-BLAST…**

Vlad barely had time to form an ecto-shield, and, even then, resisting the multiple blasting wasn't easy. He didn't notice Tucker approaching from the other side of the street, holding a Fenton Thermos.

"As Danny would say… I got you, crazy Fruit-Loop!"

Plasmius felt the mighty yanking produced by the thermos aimed against his back; unfortunately for Jack and Tucker, he already had planned a way to fight this particular trap. He quickly multiplied, and allowed one of his duplicates to get caught in the thermos as the other two blasted both Jack and Tucker. The geek was sent back by the powerful attack that also broke the thermos, releasing the already captured copy, as Jack's weapon suffered a similar destiny.

"A really impressive maneuver, I must admit," Plasmius fused with his duplicates and hovered a few feet, "I had always wondered how such a stupid jester like you, Jack Fenton, can create so ingenious and practical inventions; guess I'll never know."

Plasmius aimed at Jack with both hands as Tucker, rubbing his injured side, watched how the evil halfa was about to finish the ghost hunter, when Superman dashed in front of Jack, his hands at his back and the cape half-covering his chest.

"Forgot about me so fast?"

"Of course not; and now, I can finish the two of you with a single attack!" Plasmius grinned, shooting a powerful emerald beam against them; surprisingly, Superman stopped it with his bare hands!

"This is impossible!" Plasmius said in shock without stopping his beam. Superman sweated because of the effort, yet slowly but surely advanced through the kryptonite-powered beam, until reaching Vlad's hands. Then, he grabbed Vlad's hands, covering them entirely; Plasmius wide opened his eyes in fear when finally noticing what Superman was using.

"Remember the Fenton Gauntlets?" Jack said proudly, smirking at Plasmius, "They don't just enable anyone to touch ghosts, but are extremely resistant and perfectly isolated."

Plasmius did everything he could to escape Superman's grip; multiplying, intangibility, forming a shield… and it was useless; besides everything Jack said about the gauntlets, they also increased ten-fold the hitting and gripping strength of the person wearing them, so, even if still weakened by the kryptonite, Superman was more than able to hold his enemy. The hero looked down at Vlad's belt, and, in a dashing movement, grabbed the kryptonite, closing his fist to block the radiation; Plasmius changed back to his regular color a second later. Feeling his hand free, Vlad blasted Superman's face, but he didn't release the ghost, and hardly blinked at the attack; to prevent a more powerful blast, Superman shot a fast heat vision's attack at the evil halfa's free hand, leaving him defenseless. Plasmius shook his hand in pain, and, when turning back at Superman, he gulped and got a sheepish grin.

"You know, I'm not that fond on Luthor… we can be associates, partner, allies, whatever you want! So, what do you say?"

"I say," Superman drew back his free fist, and got a little grin, "send my greetings to the penguins."

**POOOOWWW!**

"Up, up, and away!" Tucker chuckled as he and everyone else saw Vlad flying away, screaming in pain, and, in Anime-like style, became a bright point right before disappearing from sight.

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Danny groaned in pain after his shield received another hit; the effort was just too much, and Zod only needed one or two more attacks to trespass the defense. Danny started thinking as fast as possible, trying to find a way to defeat him.

"_Come on, Danny, think! Clockwork always drops a clue or two when talking to you!" _Danny made a fast summary of Clockwork's last words, _"He is from Krypton… super strength, speed, senses…_ _you still have powers he hadn't fought yet…" _Danny wide-opened his eyes in realization as Zod approached to punch the shield again.

"As that kid from cartoons says… Brain Blast!" Danny smiled as turning off the shield and becoming intangible, so Zod passed through him. "Hey, Zod, want to play Hide and Seek?"

Danny turned invisible, making the general to groan in annoyance. He landed on a nearby rooftop, and started using his X-ray vision to search for his enemy; when couldn't find him, the general took a deep breath, and closed his eyes, in perfect silence, obviously focusing to use his super hearing to the max.

Zod grinned when hearing a deep breath, and turned back, finding Danny, visible and solid, right behind him… and smiling?

"**Ghostly WAAAAAAAAAAAAAAAIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIIILLLLLL…!"**

Even if Zod was sent through several buildings because of the visible sound waves, it wasn't nearly as painful as the powerful ear-piercing noise drilling through his brain; the sound was so strong it was breaking several windows three blocks around and shattering the buildings, so for someone able to hear people whispering the other side of the city it was a particularly nasty experience.

Danny cut the attack after a few seconds, and kneeled, panting. He immediately reversed to his human self; as always, The Ghostly Wail drained his energy, and had to make an effort to keep his conscience. After a minute or so, Zod landed at the rooftop, right in front of Danny; he was covering his left ear, his nose was bleeding, and was even more pissed than before.

"Forget about a quick death, boy," Zod said in a venomous tone, "I'm going to tear you apart so slowly and painfully you'll supplicate for death to escape agony!"

"You talk too much, you know that?" Danny said in defiance, even if feeling really scared at the moment.

"I agree with you, Danny."

Danny and Zod looked up, where Superman was hovering just a few feet away, his arms folded and still using the gauntlets.

"I should have known that creature would fail me!" Zod gritted his teeth, "Stay right there, Kal-El, or the boy is as good as dead!"

"I'm not here to save him, Zod, but to stop him from killing you," Superman's speech surprised both Zod and Danny; the hero then looked at Danny, and opened his fist slightly to show him the kryptonite.

"This has a very interesting effect on ectoplasm." Superman smiled slightly, and then tossed the mineral to Danny, who caught it with his right hand as Zod moved back. Danny smiled back at Superman, and then stood up, grinning at Zod as the boy's eyes got their ghostly color.

"Going Ghost!" Danny summoned his transformation while keeping his right hand on a fist with the kryptonite on it; when finished, his hair wasn't white, but a bright emerald color, just like his chest's symbol, plus his weakness was gone and his fists were glowing intensely. Zod gulped in fear in tried to dash away, but Superman stood on his way.

"You can't leave now, Zod; the boy has something to tell you." Superman then moved slightly aside as Zod turned to see Danny dashing against him.

"THIS IS FOR JAZZ!"

**THWACK!**

Zod flew away from the rooftop because of the mighty punch, and landed two blocks away, hitting his head with a hydrant and breaking it. A very soaked Zod stood up covering his right eye that now was black and had a large bruise under it.

"AND THIS IS FOR MY PARENTS!"

"**UUUNNGH!" **Zod was sent through the street by a powerful blasting. The general rubbed his sides as kneeling; Danny flew at high speed against him, preparing his right foot.

"AND THIS IS FOR MESSING WITH MY CITY!"

**KICK!**

Zod flew several feet up in the air, as Danny moved aside him, preparing both fists.

"AND THIS IS FOR AGREEING ON ATTACKING MY FRIENDS!"

**THRACK!**

Because of Danny's double punching, Zod impacted at a nearby wall, face first, trespassing it, ending with the head inside and the rest of his body hanging out. Danny phased through the wall, and, turning solid, grabbed him by the beard as drawing back his fist with the kryptonite on it.

"AND THIS IS FOR PAULINA!"

**POUND!**

The general was sent back through the building across the street. When finally reacting, and noticing Danny wasn't around, tried to fly and escape, but he was so injured he couldn't do it fast enough. A moment later, he noticed Danny flying right below him, aiming at the villain with both fists, both of them glowing with even more intensity.

"AND THIS ONE IS FOR VALERIE!"

**MEGABLAST!**

Zod was sent up in the sky by the powerful energy attack, barely conscious. Danny then spotted Superman, who was approaching him, and smiled.

"Hey, Mister Superman, catch!" Danny tossed the kryptonite back to him, changing back to normal. Superman caught the mineral and closed his fist again.

"I'm going to finish this my way!" Danny dashed to catch Zod in mid-air, grabbing him from behind. The general was so weak and stunned he couldn't escape; Danny turned Zod and himself intangible, and dived at full speed back to earth.

"You might need an aspirin later." Danny whispered to Zod, and, a split second before reaching the ground, separated from Zod, so Danny phased through it and Zod turned solid at the worst moment for it.

**KACRAAAASH!**

Danny phased back to the surface, watching at the bruised and unconscious Zod lying at the middle of Amity's newest crater.

"Good thing it ended; a few more attacks like this one, and Amity would have more craters than the moon." Danny sighed in relief.

"Nice job, Danny," Superman appeared next to Danny, who looked up at him, feeling more than slightly nervous, "It's not every day that someone can stand a fight against Zod and win."

"Uh… I had a lot of help, sir." Danny rubbed the back of his head.

"I did too; your parents and friends saved my life back there." Superman told him; Danny got a relieved look, but changed immediately to a concerned one as realization hit him again.

"Now everyone knows my secret," Danny sighed sadly, "and I can't do a thing about it. I have a lot of stuff to explain… if The Guys in White don't get me first."

"Whatever explaining you need to do, I think your parents will understand it," Superman placed a hand on Danny's shoulder, "and don't worry about The Guys in White. I'll deal with them."

Danny looked up at the large man, and nodded, getting a slight smile; as everyone knows, Superman's word is worthier than any contract. The Man of Steel then got a sly grin, and looked at a distance.

"Now, just one detail left."

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Several thousand miles away…

"… **YEEEEEEAAAAAAAAAARRRRRRGGGHHHH…"**

**BABOOM!**

Plasmius turned human, and, despite almost falling unconscious, the combination of pain and cold kept him awake. The billionaire raised his bruised face, noticing a large black and white bird standing a few feet away giving him a puzzled look, and talked weakly.

"Hello…"


	5. Epilogue

**EPILOGUE.**

Several days later, Vlad paced back and forth, in his regular human form and locked in a cell of Amity Park Prison, while reading a newspaper; more exactly, The Daily Planet, focusing on an article by Clark Kent.

"_After several days of research and heated arguments, scientists and law agencies finally declared that both Daniel 'Danny Phantom' Fenton and Vladimir 'Plasmius' Masters can't be considered ghosts, but meta-humans with ghostly abilities. Because of this statement, The Guys in White, the government-sponsored spectral investigation and capture's agency, aren't allowed to keep custody or perform experiments on them."_

Vlad sighed in relief when reading what probably was the only bright side on his situation. Jack and Maddie, as well as several other experts, performed a few tests on both him and Danny on the last days; their diagnosis saved both him and his young enemy from being treated as frogs in a high school's lab. Any research done on them would be performed under strict surveillance and following international laws, and, in Danny's case, only if he allowed it.

"_Daniel had been declared free of any charges presented against him because of property damage and other collateral effects of his battles, partially because of evidence found in Masters' files, proving the boy efforts to protect his hometown. These files also revealed several illegal actions performed by Masters on the last 20 years, including attempts of human cloning and the use of his abilities to influence, terrorize, and even control important business people and politicians."_

Vlad groaned in annoyance; his own technology was used against him! He still wondered about how anyone could enter his system, even with the court's authorization; when Superman was asked about knowing how this was done, he simply replied _'That's a very good Question'_ and gave no more comments.

"_Masters' company, DALV Industries, was acquired in its totality this morning by Wayne Corp. The company's CEO, Bruce Wayne, declared that there would be no firing of any Masters' former employees, but assured it would be a major investigation to find out those who willingly helped their boss on his illegal deeds and act in consequence. Wayne also declared that Jack and Madeleine Fenton, Daniel's parents and Amity's paranormal experts, will be at charge of DALV's scientific division, and Damon Gray, the father of Valerie 'The Red Huntress' Gray, and certified security expert, will be the Security Chief of said area."_

Vlad tossed the paper after reading that paragraph. He never considered Wayne a threat; he always considered him a softie and a spoiled rich boy, unable to do anything slightly intelligent against him; more than anyone else, Vlad should have known that appearances could be deceiving.

"It's time, Mister Masters."

Vlad turned when hearing the prison's warden, aside several armed guards (many of them using ecto-blasters designed by Jack and Maddie), talking to him and unlocking the gate. Vlad looked at his waist, and cursed Jack for the millionth time; he had modified one of his inventions, The Specter Deflector, so Vlad could use it without being hurt but blocking his powers entirely. On top of that, the device was covered with a thin layer of Promethium, the world's most resistant metal, so even someone with Superman's strength would have several problems to break it without hurting the former billionaire; and, finally, the deflector still worked its usual way so no ghost could touch Vlad, eliminating the possibility of one of his spectral minions helping him get rid of it.

Vlad walked out of the cell and got handcuffed. As the guards walked him out of the prison to the special transport that would take him to his final residence, Vlad remembered another paragraph of the article he just had read.

"_Masters will be transferred today to Belle Reeve Prison, where he will be locked with the proper security measures. Also, in a related note, General Zod, who had been in said facility since his defeat and capture, will be disposed properly today as well…"_

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

Zod hit one of his cell's walls in fury, despite the aching feeling on his knuckles. Just like Vlad, he was wearing a modified Specter Deflector, with the same characteristics and causing a similar effect, thanks to its regular power source being replaced by, ironically, the same piece of kryptonite that Masters acquired to battle Superman. For extra security, the alien's cell had a large shielded lamp on it, constantly bathing the villain with the same light specter of a red sun, which rendered a kryptonian as vulnerable as a regular man.

"Come on, Zod, it's time to go."

The general turned and glared murderously at Superman, and then at Danny Phantom, who was just aside, both of them folding arms and keeping a serious expression. The elder hero opened the gate, and then Danny entered the cell, dragging Zod out. Even if the Deflector's effect was modified to focus mainly on Zod, Superman still felt a minor weakness when being next to it; on the bright side, it also gave Danny a slight power boost, making Zod's escape an impossible task.

"You'll pay for this humiliation, kid," Zod growled at Danny as he and Superman escorted him through the prison's corridors, "and you, Kal-El, I can assure you…"

"Don't make any promises, Zod," Danny cut him, "I doubt you'll be around to really make them effective."

"Silly boy; I'll find my way out of The Phantom Zone as before!"

"Who said you were going back there? By the way, here on Earth is better known as Ghost Zone." Superman cleared without stopping their march, "And yes, you are right about something; you obviously can find a way out of there, just like the ghosts that regularly attack Phantom's town, so you'll go to a different kind of prison."

"No prison on this pathetic planet can hold me forever!" Zod snapped at the heroes. Superman and Danny gave each other a knowing look, and Danny got a smug tone.

"And we don't want you here either, so we are kicking you out."

The trio finally arrived at the prison yard, surrounded by armed guards, and, in the middle of it, besides the warden, there were other three figures, all of them using green and black uniforms with a ring-like symbol at the chest, and white gloves, plus each wearing a green ring. One was obviously human, an Afro-American, but the other two weren't; one was pretty large, pink colored, and his face looked a lot like a hippo's, while the other was a purple skinned female with black hair and pointy ears.

"General Zod," the human said in an all-business tone, "as you had been declared a planetary-level threat, I, John Stewart, and my companions, Katma-Tui and Kilowog, by the power invested into us by The Green Lantern Corps, and with authorization of the USA government and the UN, will proceed to transfer you to a special imprisonment facility, located in planet Daxam, on a red sun's solar system, during the whole time of your life sentence."

Zod paled, realizing how his escape attempt had turned from really hard to nearly impossible. Danny and Superman moved away from him as Kilowog, the large Green Lantern, shot an energy beam from his power ring, trapping Zod inside a large sphere for his transportation.

"Please, tell the Guardians we are very thankful for their cooperation." Superman said to John, who nodded at him and then turned at Danny, who was visibly nervous; even if he and Superman had seen each other on an almost daily basis since the Amity's incident, he still felt intimidated at the idea of meeting some of the most powerful and famous heroes ever.

"Keep the good job, kid." John said in a half-kind, half-severe tone.

"Yes, Mister Lantern… or Mister Green, or… oh, man I just screwed myself." Danny slapped his forehead in frustration, but relaxed a little when noticing the elder heroes smiling at him, and Katma-Tui, the female alien, chuckling a little.

"Enough chatting, poozers," Kilowog got everyone's attention as his ring formed a link with the sphere.

"Yes, we have to go now," Katma-Tui nodded at John and Superman, and, a moment later, the three Corps, with Kilowog transporting the sphere, flew away from the prison, with Katma-Tui waving bye to both Superman and Danny.

"I met a pretty alien girl… Tucker is going to freak out." Danny chuckled slightly, and then felt Superman's hand on his shoulder.

"We'll better leave as well; I'll return later when Vlad arrives." Superman informed Danny, who nodded in agreement; he had seen enough of Vlad, and if he couldn't see him for the rest of his life will still be too soon. After saying good bye to the warden and guards, Danny and Superman headed to Amity.

"By the way, Danny, how are things at home?" Superman asked his young companion.

"Better than I thought," Danny shrugged yet conserved a little smile, "Jazz, Tucker, Sam and I explained everything to my parents, and they felt a little uncomfortable at first because of all the times they tried to hunt me, but after I told them I had no harsh feelings and was already planning to tell them my secret anyway, they relaxed a lot and now are back to their normal selves; I just hope my dad doesn't ask me to help him test every single weapon he invents," Danny rolled his eyes but his good mood was unchanged.

"I still have some problems at school with all the guys asking things to me and Valerie; they want to see me using my powers and her showing her skills, talk about my battles, and stuff like that. Jazz, Sam and Tucker are getting a lot of the same, but I think Tuck doesn't really care since most of the people asking stuff to him are girls. On the bright side, my teachers are very understanding about my situation, even those who still doesn't fully accept me, so they'll consider my ghost hunting activities when grading and giving me homework, plus Dash, who was my personal bully, stopped torturing me and now he and the other jocks are trying to be civil with me and about every nerd, geek, or Goth; sure, Dash still calls me names, but I guess it's because of the force of habit, and at least now he doesn't do it for insulting. Now, if I can get Paulina to stop harassing me at every possible chance, then maybe I'll be able to graduate without going crazy or her receiving a beating from Valerie."

"And how are things with Valerie?"

"Well, we now have to deal with the whole 'lack of private life' issues, but we are handling it just fine; being able to turn invisible or fly away when a lot of groupies surround us is a major advantage here," Danny commented, "and Mister Gray, well, he accepted me pretty well before knowing about my powers, and is quite tolerant, so things are going fine with him… despite the fact he yesterday installed a ghost alarm on Valerie's room, just in case."

Superman chuckled a little at Danny's slight frown when saying the last part. The hero then noticed Amity Park at a distance, and motioned Danny to stop, so they stayed hovering one in front of the other.

"I must return to Metropolis now, Danny, but I first have to give you something," Superman took a little card out from a pocket hidden on his cape, and handled it to Danny, who gasped when reading it.

"A Justice League's membership?"

"A honorary one, at least until you turn 18," Superman informed him, "I'll call you or your parents later for more details, but I can tell that, as a honorary member, you have full right to use our training facilities, plus you'll receive a communicator to ask for help whenever needing it. And, if still interested, once you turn 18 you'll be able to join us as a full time member."

Danny stared at the card for a few moments, speechless, and then looked up at Superman with a bright expression.

"Of course I will! Thanks, for everything, Mister…!"

"Please, call me Kal," Superman extended his hand, "that's how my friends call me."

"Okay, Kal." Danny shook Superman's hand, still not fully believing what was happening to him.

A few minutes later, at the entrance of Amity Park Mall…

"Look, up in the sky!" Star pointed at a distance, getting everyone's attention.

"It's a bird?" Kwan asked as focusing his sight.

"It's a plane." A random guy said.

"No; it's Fenturd," Dash shook his head, and slapped his forehead, "I mean, Fenton, or Phantom! God, I must stop doing that!"

"At least he is trying." Sam smirked at Tucker and Valerie, who chuckled a little without losing sight of Danny, who landed next to them a moment later.

"So, Danny, what happened?" Valerie asked after giving him a fast welcome kiss.

"The short version is that Green Lantern and two of his companions took Zod to an alien jail, Vlad will arrive to Belle Reeve in a couple of hours, and Superman made me an honorary leaguer." Danny showed the card to his girlfriend and best friends, who gasped when looking at it, just like every teen around hearing the conversation.

"Danny, this is amazing!" Sam hardly could keep her usual Goth emotionless expression because of the excitement, "Hey, you think you can get me Hawkgirl and Black Canary's autographs?"

"And Wonder Woman and Vixen's too?" Valerie added.

"And their phone numbers, please!" Tucker said in excitement, getting soft glaring from his friends, "Hey, I'm a hormone-driven teenager, remember?"

"Tucker, all they are grown-up women, and I'm sure most of them are already involved with someone." Danny replied.

"Guess you're right," Tucker sighed, but his expression brightened immediately, "Hey, I'm sure you'll meet the Teen Titans! Probably Starfire, Raven or Bumblebee is available… ouch!" Tucker was cut by Sam and Val slapping the back of his head.

"I give up." Danny sighed as rolling his eyes. Valerie then linked arms with him, and kissed his cheek.

"Well, forget about that; now, it's time to celebrate our parents' new jobs and your membership as well." Valerie said, making Danny to smile widely at her.

"Yeah, and there's any way better than enjoying a good movie and stuffing ourselves with junk food?" Sam pointed as she and Tucker walked aside the couple, and the group waved hello to Dash, Kwan and Star, who were heading somewhere else.

"DANNY!"

"Here we go again," Tucker commented while Sam and Danny rolled their eyes and Valerie frowned a little. Paulina dashed in front of the group, her eyes wide-open, and panting.

"Please, Danny, you can stop torturing me!" Paulina practically begged, "I know you like me, so why keep hanging around with the loser squad and dating a had-been-popular?"

"You know we are here, right?" Valerie said as she and Sam narrowed their eyes.

"And the had-been-popular girl is already more popular than you, being a daring ghost huntress dating Amity's golden boy," Tucker pointed as getting a smug look that made both Sam and the couple to relax a little and smile.

"Actually, now I think about it, we're the most popular guys in Amity," Sam said slyly, "not that we are looking for that, but most people like us."

Paulina's right eye twitched at the Goth's words, knowing she was right.

"Okay, bad choice of words," Paulina got a deep breath, "But seriously, Danny, I'm the love of your life…"

"Correction, Paulina; I thought you WERE the love of my life; you know, WERE, past tense of the 'I no longer care' verb," Danny cut the girl's speech, "I mean no harm to you, and I'll protect you if necessary, as I do with everyone else, but that's all; you eliminated the other feeling by insulting and rejecting me several times plus being mean with Valerie when her father lost his job, and how you still keep insulting my friends and talking bad about them even when they are present. Now, if you excuse us, we have a movie to catch."

Danny, still linking arms with Valerie, passed aside Paulina, with Tucker and Sam at the other side, leaving the Latina girl just standing there. Tucker then looked over his shoulder, and sighed.

"She is going to insist."

"You know what that means," Danny offered his free arm to Sam, who nodded and linked arms with both him and Tucker. Then, Danny made the four of them intangible, as Paulina tried desperately to grab him and making a fool of her self in the process.

"No, Danny, wait! All those insults weren't for real! I was just playing hard to get, honestly! And Val, you can go back to the A-List! Manson, forgive me, please! Foley, I'll kiss you if you convince Danny! HAVE MERCY!"

xxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxxx

At Clockwork's headquarters, the time ghost, grinning, watched the mall scene at his monitor, with Danielle sitting next to him, the girl chuckling and eating popcorn.

"Who said there was nothing good on TV?"

**THE END.**

**XXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXXX**

So, Tucker, what do you think? (Excellent, dude!) So, you liked it? (Of course I liked it! I mean, besides having a lot of good lines, I got the attention of several girls and Paulina was begging for kissing me! Now, add a new scene with the alien babe and me, and the story will be perfect!) Two words, Tucker; cold shower!

Anyway, as we said when starting the story, we had several characters here, besides Danny and company, that I don't own either. (Yes; we had Superman/Kal-El/Clark Kent, General Zod, The Green Lantern Corps, Lois Lane, Jimmy Olsen and Perry White, plus mentioning Lex Luthor, The Question, Bruce Wayne/Batman, Wonder Woman, Vixen, Hawkgirl, Black Canary, Aquaman, The Justice League, The Guardians, Jor-El, The Teen Titans, and some things and places copyrighted by DC comics and Warner Brothers. We also had references to Star Wars, created by George Lucas; to Jimmy Neutron, copyrighted by DNA Productions and Nickelodeon; and mentions of E.T., Alf and Marvin Martian, who Ramiro doesn't own as well.)

Thanks to anyone who read and reviewed this story. (And please, review a last time before leaving.) Thanks, Tucker.

So long, everybody, and… (Let the force be with you!) Tucker… (Sorry; continue, please).

Keep the good writing.


End file.
